Brexit has cost us $1.5 trillion and worse may be on the way

If Britain were a boxer, it would be Sonny Liston, sitting in the corner after Ali’s assault. If ministers don't see the danger of the instability fuelled by insecurity and inequality, the nation could find itself sprawling on the canvass

If Britain were a boxer it’d be Sonny Liston. A true heavyweight (remember the UK was the world’s fifth biggest economy before the Brexit vote), by proposing to give up its membership of the EU this nation, like Liston when he faced Muhammad Ali, has retreated to its corner, sat on its stool and refused to get up for the next round.

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Now, this might even be one occasion where the super-wealthy have suffered most in absolute terms: House prices at the top end in London have taken a kicking, for example.

But the thing is, if you’re a millionaire, or even a not quite millionaire any more, while you might not be very happy about about taking such a loss, you should be able to weather the storm. Those lower down the food chain might not have suffered quite so much in absolute terms. Trouble is, they won't have the sort of reserves needed to see them through a period of turbulence such as that which Britain is now facing.

There are an awful lot of people in the “likely to struggle” category. While Britain still has 2.2 million dollar millionaires, and a little over half of the adult population has wealth exceeding $100,000, the other half, obviously, doesn’t have very much. Some 10 million people, for example, have less than £100 in savings.

These are the sort of people who fall prey to payday lenders and other sharks. Their struggles, bound to get worse as the economy deteriorates, have played a role in increasing the country’s debt to income from 150 per cent in 2013 to 170 per cent today.

The report blandly states that this level of debt “is not exceptionally high by international standards”.

The Bank of England, however, cannot afford to be quite so complacent. If that figure keeps rising at the rate that it has been, we’re in for trouble.

All of which plays into the hands of the cynical demagogues who created the problem in the first place, the people who, by pledging to put “Britain First”, have left us in this mess.

By promising people they’ll throw up walls to protect what little they have, they offer the wrong answers to the wrong questions.

They have no recipe for tackling the insecurity they exploit beyond baring their teeth and raising their fists. But it’s proved to be very effective. And they may be poised to reap further benefits if mainstream politicians fail to see the danger they have, up until now, been blind to.

Perhaps the election of Donald Trump will open their eyes. Or will it take the election of Marine Le Pen for them wake up?

Brexit Concerns

Brexit Concerns

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Raymond McCord holds up his newly issued Irish passport alongside his British passport outside the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit

PA wire

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SDLP leader Colum Eastwood leaving the High Court in Belfast following a judges dismissal of the UK's first legal challenges to Brexit

PA wire

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Migrants with luggage walk past a graffiti on a wall as they leave the 'Jungle' migrant camp, as part of a major three-day operation planned to clear the camp in Calais

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Migrants leave messages on their tents in the Jungle migrant camp

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The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (Adra) which distributes approximately 700 meals daily in the northern Paris camp states that it is noticing a spike in new migrant arrivals this week, potentially linked the the Calais 'jungle' camp closure - with around 1000 meals distributed today

EPA

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Migrant workers pick apples at Stocks Farm in Suckley, Britain

Reuters

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Many farmers across the country are voicing concerns that Brexit could be a dangerous step into the
unknown for the farming industry

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Bank of England governor Mark Carney who said the long-term outlook for the UK economy is positive, but growth was slowing in the wake of the Brexit vote

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The Dow Jones industrial average closed down over 600 points on the news with markets around the globe pluninging

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Immigration officers deal with each member of the public seeking entry into the United Kingdom but on average, 10 a day are refused entry at this London airport and between 2008 and 2009, 33,100 people were detained at the airport for mainly passport irregularities

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A number of global investment giants have threatened to move their European operations out of London if Brexit proves to have a negative impact on their businesses

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Following the possibility of a Brexit the UK would be released from its renewable energy targets under the EU Renewable Energy Directive and from EU state aid restrictions, potentially giving the government more freedom both in the design and phasing out of renewable energy support regimes

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A woman looking at a chart showing the drop in the pound (Sterling) against the US Dollar in London after Britain voted to leave the EU

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Young protesters outside the Houses of Parliament in Westminster, to protest against the United Kingdom's decision to leave the EU following the referendum

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Applications from Northern Ireland citizens for Irish Passports has soared to a record high after the UK Voted in favour of Leaving the EU

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NFU Vice President Minette Batters with Secretary of State, Andrea Leadsome at the National Farmers Union (NFU) took machinery, produce, farmers and staff to Westminster to encourage Members of Parliament to back British farming, post Brexit

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The latest reports released by the UK Cabinet Office warn that expats would lose a range of specific rights to live, to work and to access pensions, healthcare and public services. The same reports added that UK citizens abroad would not be able to assume that these rights will be guaranteed in the future

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A British resident living in Spain asks questions during an informative Brexit talk by the "Brexpats in Spain" group, about Spanish legal issues to become Spanish citizens, at the town hall in Benalmadena, Spain

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The collapse of Great Britain appears to have been greatly exaggerated given the late summer crowds visiting city museums, hotels, and other important tourist attractions

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The U.K. should maintain European Union regulations covering everything from working hours to chemicals until after the government sets out its plans for Brexit, said British manufacturers anxious to avoid a policy vacuum and safeguard access to their biggest export market

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The insecurities I mentioned fester on the back of the world’s grotesque inequality. Another finding of the report is that the top 1 per cent now holds 50.8 per cent of global wealth, above the levels seen in 2000.

Oxfam says the huge gap is “undermining economies, destabilising societies and holding back the fight against poverty”. Quite right.

Unequal societies are unstable societies. Britain remains a worryingly unequal society, accounting for a third of those individuals officially classified as ultra-high-net-worth – more colloquially as filthy rich – coming in third after the US and China.

That isn’t anything to be particularly proud of. The gap between them and the rest is something that needs to be addressed as a matter of urgency. If it isn’t, that $1.5 trillion? As big a number as it is, it might just be the start. If so, Britain risks ending up on the canvass like Liston in his rematch with Ali, as opposed to just sitting blooded in its corner as he did after their first encounter.